title: Exploring the intergenerational persistence of mental health: evidence from three generations.
abstract: This paper uses data from the 1970 British Cohort Study to quantify the intergenerational persistence of mental health, and the long-run economic costs associated with poor parental mental health. We find a strong and significant intergenerational correlation that is robust to different covariate sets, sample restrictions, model specifications and potential endogeneity. Importantly, the intergenerational persistence is economically relevant, with maternal mental health associated with lasting effects on the child's educational attainment, future household income and the probability of having criminal convictions. These results do not disappear after controlling for children's own childhood and adulthood mental health.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health Economics, Monash University, Australia.
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: Stefanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schurer
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Shields
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003415:Crime; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations; D008297:Male; D008429:Maternal Welfare / Q000523:psychology*; D008603:Mental Health / Q000191:economics*; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D006113:United Kingdom; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Crime; Economic outcomes; I12; I14; Intergenerational transmission; J62; Mental health; Mobility